Moment 4x4 rams Tesco superstore in failed bid to steal safe, with terrified staff still inside shop
14 November 2024, 14:55 | Updated: 15 November 2024, 17:29
CCTV shows burglars attempt to ram raid Tesco to steal safe
This is the moment brazen thieves are caught ramming a Tesco superstore in an abortive attempt to steal the shop's safe.
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Drug addict Jack Bradley, 25, was jailed for two years after previously pleading guilty to burglary other than dwelling with intent to steal.
He was part of a group of criminals who rammed the Tesco superstore in Bishops Cleeve near Cheltenham in the early hours of December 6 last year.
Bradley was caught on camera waiting nearby with his transit van, rear doors wide open, as he anticipated the return of other members of the group.
CCTV footage showed the group clearing the area in front of the shop before reversing a Mercedes 4x4 into the metal shutters as the group tried to smash their way in.
Staff were still inside the Tesco and Bradley and his accomplices launched the ram raid.
They did not manage to steal anything, but caused £80,000 of damage. The shop had to close for the day, losing Tesco an estimated £120,000 in lost sales and staff pay.
Police investigating the failed raid found DNA belonging to Bradley - who was already serving a three-year prison sentence for a separate offence by this point - on a tissue left behind in the Tesco carpark.
Officers found the abandoned stolen Renault van that Bradley drove to the scene and also discovered his DNA on the steering wheel, gear stick, handbrake, a vape and a screwdriver.
Police charged him in connection with the incident and he pleaded guilty during a hearing on October 9 this year.
His two-year sentence will run concurrently with his other three-year jail stint. He was also ordered to pay £167,000 in a surcharge.
Bradley's lawyer said in his defence that he had a drug addiction and he only took part in the raid because he was recruited by people he was afraid of.
Investigating officer PC Hancock from the Cheltenham and Tewkesbury Vanguard team said: "I am pleased that Bradley has been sentenced as his actions on 6 December last year had a huge impact on those involved.
"It affected the community of Bishop's Cleeve as well as Tesco and its employees. This would've been a very frightening experience for the members of staff who were in the building at the time of the attempted ram raid."
